1999 U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinals Begin Wednesday

NewsAug 10, 1999

CHICAGO (Tuesday, August 10, 1999) - With the #13 Charleston Battery's
thrilling 4-3 overtime upset of #3 D.C. United in the final match of the
third round last week, it appears that the 1999 U.S. Open Cup could mark
the "Year of the A-League" as the annual tournament enters the quarterfinal
round tomorrow night. The A-League has produced three of the eight
quarterfinalists, guaranteeing that at least one team from the Division II
league will advance to the semifinals, which will be played at the Virginia
Beach SportsPlex at a date to be determined. The four quarterfinal matches
will take place over the next week (Aug. 11-18), with two matches tomorrow
night and another on Friday.

The other two A-League quarterfinalists, the #9 Rochester Raging
Rhinos and #11 Staten Island Vipers, will be looking to further their role
of the spoiler in this year's tournament after they also upset their MLS
counterparts in the third round. The #9-ranked Rhinos, the defending
A-League champs, pulled out a surprising 1-0 win over the Chicago Fire, the
reigning U.S. Open Cup and MLS Cup holders, in front of 10,107 fans at
Frontier Field in Rochester, N.Y. One night earlier and across the state,
the #11-ranked Staten Island Vipers stole a 3-2 overtime victory from the
ailing MetroStars.

The Rhinos will host the #5-ranked and '97 Open Cup champion Dallas
Burn on Wednesday, August 11 at Frontier Field in Rochester, N.Y., arguably
one of the most difficult soccer stadiums to play in as a visiting team.
The Vipers will travel to Charleston to play at the Battery's Blackbaud
Stadium next Wednesday, August 18. The three teams will be looking to be
the first A-League team to earn a semi-final spot since 1996, when the
Rhinos advanced all the way to the Open Cup final, where they lost to D.C.
United, 3-0.

MLS, which has dominated the final stages of the Open Cup in the
three previous years and has produced the last three champions, will host
the other two matches. The #1 Colorado Rapids, who lead the Western
Conference with a 12-5 record, will travel to face the #6 Tampa Bay Mutiny
on Friday, August 13 at Raymond James Stadium. In the other all-MLS
quarterfinal, the #4-ranked and '98 Open Cup runner-up Columbus Crew will
head west to take on the rejuvenated #7 Los Angeles Galaxy on Wednesday,
August 11 at Cal-State Fullerton's Titan Field.

The Virginia Beach SportsPlex was named the site of the semifinals
after missing out on hosting last year's final when the nasty Hurricane
Bonnie forced the Open Cup final inland to Chicago's Soldier Field. The
12,000-seat stadium, which hosts the A-League's Hampton Roads Mariners, was
completed in 1998 and stands as one of the first stadiums in the country
that was built specifically for soccer.

Another is the newly-constructed Columbus Crew Stadium, where the
1999 U.S. Open Cup Final will be played on Tuesday, September 14 and
televised live at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN for the first time in the tournament's
history. For ticket information, contact the Columbus Crew at
614/447-CREW.

Rankings based on team's divisional standing as of June 1, 1999 ... Team rankings do not affect team pairings or home-field advantage, but are listed to serve the media and fans in comparing team strengths ... League affiliation listed in parenthesis.